Earth has many, many voices. Those who understand that Earth is a living being know this because they have translated themselves to the humble grasses and old trees.
– Roshi Joan Halifax –
Being with Uncertainty
It’s hard to turn around these days and not be confronted with the fact that we are living through a time of dramatic change. Whether witnessing an ever-growing divisive political landscape, social unrest, the devastation of war, or the palpable reverberations of a warming planet, the ground beneath our feet can feel increasingly unsteady and the future wildly uncertain. It is only natural in times like these to be distressed.
Uncertainty is a wellspring for anxiety, which can create a mental landscape filled with worry, agitation, denial, and a nagging doubt that things will ever get better. Regardless of where we might personally land on the spectrum of distress, we can be certain that fear is the horse we ride upon.
Although it’s important to normalize this tendency to become anxious when living in the realm of the unknown, this is not the end of the story. Our capacity to recognize when these states are arising within us is critical to staying balanced and steady. It is exactly in these moments, when conditions would be inclined to sweep us off our feet, that we can build and reinforce the foundations of personal resilience while staying committed to compassionate action.
Meeting Distress
In this time of deep uncertainty, I often find myself caught in the push-pull of the discrepancy between the world I want to live in and the world as it actually is. It can be difficult at times to keep my anxiety in check and not become disheartened by all the challenges and unwanted possibilities I see around me. I feel the anxiety arise within my own body, heart, and mind and the suffering it evokes.
In these moments of personal distress, I am reminded I have choices about how I meet them. I can become consumed by my anxiety, potentially shifting into a prolonged, uncomfortable mental state, launch into an unproductive reactive behavior that provides me with some momentary relief, or soften and tend to the distress I feel out of care and concern for my own well-being.
As activist, author, and Buddhist teacher Roshi Joan Halifax says, our work as activists is to maintain a “strong back, soft front” as we serve this world. Rather than being motivated by fear, which can influence our mental state and behaviors in unproductive ways, we are better served to (metaphorically speaking), have a back that is sturdy and flexible while cultivating a heart that is tender and open. The place where these two capacities meet is the embodiment of equanimity, an unwavering internal steadiness grounded in compassion.
Nature As a Refuge
Personally, I find the natural world to be an invaluable source of refuge from the vexations of a human world perpetually grappling with itself. Spending time in nature is a powerful reminder that humanity has emerged from something far more ancient than the comings and goings of the histrionic, man-made dilemmas of our times. Nature has its own rhythms and cycles that we can attune to, and within which we can encounter belonging and find meaningful rest.
Through its sheer presence nature can teach us how to come back to the simplicity of simply noticing our aliveness as a living, breathing human being. It is in this awareness that we can access the stability and tranquility within that we often seek outside of ourselves.
Practice Being Peace
When the chaos of the outer world becomes the chaos within, I often look to nature to remind me of what it feels like to be still, peaceful, and to endure without struggle. Frequently, I’ll go for a walk in a natural setting, and when I find physical reminders in the environment that exude the steadiness I seek within, I’ll spend some time drawing upon their strength.
I encourage you to give this practice a try yourself. The next time you’re feeling out of sorts and needing to find some peace, take yourself for a leisurely walk in nature.
As you walk, allow your senses to drink in the environment: feel the sensations of your feet making contact with the ground, notice the smells that come and go as you walk, and listen to the soundscape around you.
From time to time, pause to sense the stillness and peacefulness within the landscape: the trees, grasses, flowers, rocks, and water that may surround you. Notice how these natural elements simply exist, how they meet their environment without force or struggle and are completely at one with how things are.
If you find something in the natural environment that really “sings” the steadiness you seek, perhaps stop for a time to take it in and see if it is possible to embody its presence. It might be the rooted steadiness of a tree, the enduring presence of a rock, boulder, or mountain, a peaceful body of water, prairie, or marshland. Allow your senses to remain open as you spend time with, and learn from this natural element. See if it’s possible to embody within yourself what you sense emanating from it.
If emotions arise as you dwell within this peaceful space, see if you can make room for their expression, letting them pass through you. Allow nature to bear witness to, and comfort, your pain. And if the emotions ever feel like too much, direct your attention back to the peace within the environment.
As you work with this practice over time, it may become increasingly easier to harness this natural tranquility within yourself even when the storms of life roll through.
Conclusion
It is quite normal for us as humans to be anxious in the midst of uncertainty. Still, it is critically important to recognize that internal distress does not need to shut down our capacity to stay open, curious, and responsive to our own suffering or the suffering of the world.
To be strong and resilient without losing access to our tenderness and vulnerability is the essential work of the changemaker. Working in activist spaces, we must develop skillful means to remind ourselves of the strength and goodness that is always within us.
Nature is not only a wise teacher, it is also a powerful healer. It meets us just as we are and reminds us of our place in a wider web of life. Seeking sources of stillness in the natural world can provide a means to allow the storms within to pass through so we can access once again our inner tranquility.
We can more easily anchor into our own strength when our spirit is consistently nourished. Turning towards our distress with kindness, curiosity, and care can keep us anchored to the here and now, disrupting the tendency to catastrophize about an unknown future, and tending to the weariness within.
We all need reminders in times like these, perhaps in the simplest of terms, that the past is history, the future is a mystery, and the present is a gift.
Amy Zoe Schonhoff is the founder of Mindfulness in the Heartland, a certified teacher of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction through the Mindfulness Center at Brown University, and a certified teacher of Advanced Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness. Amy has also served as a nonprofit professional for over 20 years working in arts- and community-based organizations within Kansas City. In her spare time, she loves spending time with her family, hiking outdoors, and creating a sanctuary for pollinators in her garden.
